Perspectives Winter/Spring-2017

COLLEGE OF HEALTH CARE SCIENCES • 41 It was not until recently, however, that the notion to utilize NSU as a sort of blank canvas for the project emerged. The Student Occupational Therapy Associ- tion graciously committed to continually sponsor the exhibit and looks forward to the next rotation of art- work on campus. This partnership is an advocacy opportunity on many levels. Literature indicates that individuals labeled with a severe and persistent mental illness live as many as 25 fewer years than their counterparts. They are at greater risk for obesity, smoking, and poor dietary intake and frequently suffer prevent- able illnesses, such as cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases, diabetes, and cancer. These physical conditions are often the result of social and economic injustices that lead to occupational deprivation, lack of access to adequate and affordable treatment, and social isolation resulting from stigma. With these medical conditions in mind, the opportunity to lease artwork from 9Muses served as an impactful way to bridge the gap between physical and mental illness among students and faculty members from various health care colleges in the Health Professions Division. In this case, art offers a nonthreatening avenue to demystify mental illness and to dialogue about the artist—the person—rather than the illness. Both the physical and social landscape of the atrium outside the Steele Auditorium has changed dramatically since the installation. Walls that were once barren are now suddenly alive with color and spirit. Students and faculty members who would typically rush from one building to the next, seemingly blind to their surround- ings, now often stop to talk about the artwork. n Opposite Page: Fall Trees by Angelo Lombardo Left: Arizona Sunset by Angelo Lombardo Below: Winter Sunrise by Angelo Lombardo